Warriors coach Steve Kerr says he used marijuana to alleviate chronic pain
Kerr is still not pain free a year and a half after having back surgery
Wanting to fix a ruptured disc in his spine that had been causing discomfort, Golden State Warriors coach Steve Kerr had back surgery in July 2015. But due to complications from the surgery that caused a spinal fluid leak, Kerr was sidelined and could not coach the Warriors for the first several months of the 2015-2016 season. Kerr remained out until Jan. 22 and upon his return, he guided the Warriors to a historic record of 73-9.
Even when he returned, Kerr was not symptom-free for any stretch last year and it doesn't appear that he is this year, either. Dealing with a lot of pain during this last year and a half, Kerr said he experimented with the use of marijuana to help alleviate some of the discomfort.
"I guess maybe I can even get in some trouble for this," Kerr told CSN's Monte Poole on the Warriors Insider Podcast. "But I've actually tried [marijuana] twice during the last year and a half, when I've been going through this chronic pain that I've been dealing with."
Kerr clarified that he used marijuana when he was away from the team and not coaching. He also informed Poole that he was unaware if he was going to be drug tested, but that the marijuana "didn't help at all."
"But it was worth it," Kerr said. "I was searching for answers on pain. I've tried pain killers and drugs of other kinds as well, those have been worse. So it's tricky."
The topic of marijuana use came up when Kerr and Poole started talking about NFL players ( like Buffalo Bills offensive tackle Seantrel Henderson) using the drug to help with pain management. Although Kerr did not benefit from the use of the drug, the Warriors coach believes at some point in the future all major sport leagues will allow players to use marijuana for medicinal purposes, as he believes it is better than pain killers like Vicodin.
















